In the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a recent study suggests that political beliefs predict the professional decisions of primary care physicians.

On politicized health issues, like marijuana and abortion, physicians’ partisan identity is highly correlated with their treatment decisions.

Because physicians regularly interact with patients on politically sensitive health issues and because the medical profession is increasingly politicized (e.g., state governments are regulating politicized aspects of medicine), it is necessary to understand how doctors’ own political worldviews may impact their actions in the medical examination room.